Punching time recorder

ABSTRACT

A time recorder for punching employee arrival and departure times into a data processing card, which apparatus comprises a card positioner, a photoelectric card reader, a time generator, logic circuits and a punching mechanism. The card positioner aligns the card to the current day and time period, the card reader reads into the logic circuits employee work shift and lunch period identification which has been prepunched in the card, and the time generator introduces into the logic circuits current time information. Upon compiling such information, the logic circuits make a decision and cause actuation of the punching mechanism, after which the card positioner ejects the card.

United States Patent Inventors James T. Coll:

New Providence; Carl A. lnpyn, Kinnelon: Robert R. Meola, Parsippany, all oi, NJ. Appl. No. 846,509 Filed July 31, 1969 Patented July 27, 1971 Assignee Celculagraph Company Township of East Hanover, NJ.

PUNCHING TIME RECORDER 39 Claims, 30 Drawing Figs.

0.8. CI. 346/86 Int. Cl. G07c 1/08 Field of 346/82, 83, 86,91

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,838,361 6/1958 Findlay et al. 346/83 3.325.820 6/1967 Duffy et al. 346/83 Primary Examiner-Joseph W. Hartary Attorney-Rudolph J. Jurick ABSTRACT: A time recorder for punching employee arrival and departure times into a data processing card, which apparatus comprises a card positioner, a photoelectric card reader, a time generator, logic circuits and a punching mechanism. The card positioner aligns the card to the current day and time period, the card reader reads into the logic circuits employee work shift and lunch period identification which has been prepunched in the card, and the time generator introduces into the logic circuits current time information. Upon compiling such information, the logic circuits make a decision and cause actuation of the punching mechanism, after which the card positioner ejects the card.

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1. Apparatus for punching current time in a standard data processing card, said apparatus comprising, a. card-punching means positioned to punch individual lines of the card, b. means defining an initial reference position of the card with respect to the card-punching means, c. card-transport means operated upon insertion of the card into the apparatus and automatically moving the card to the said reference position, d. control means actuated by the card when it reaches said reference position, e. logic circuits, f. a time generator introducing current time information into the logic circuits, g. drive roller means and cooperating pinch roller means engaging the card when it is in said reference position, h. ratcheting means mechanically coupled to said drive roller means and operated upon actuation of said control means, operation of the ratcheting means causing said drive roller means to displace the card from said initial reference position in a step-by-step manner, i. a rotary switch having a plurality of fixed contacts and having a contact arm mechanically coupled to said drive roller means, j. means including said rotary switch controlling the number of operations of said ratcheting means, k. means including said rotary switch and logic circuits controlling operation of said card-punching means to punch current time as a multiple digit time entry in the card between the step-by-step displacements thereof by the said drive roller means, and l. means ejecting the card from the apparatus upon completion of the punching of the time entry therein.
 2. The invention as recited in claim 1, including additional card-punching means positioned to provide a reference punch in a predetermined line of the card, and means operating the additional card-punching means simultaneously with alternate time entries punched in the card.
 3. The invention as recited in claim 1, wherein the logic circuits are preprogrammed in accordance with a predetermined time schedule; and including additional card-punching means positioned to provide a reference punch in a predetermined line of the card, means controlled by the logic circuits and operating said additional card-punching means along with the punching of the time entry in the card when such time entry corresponds to that preprogrammed in the logic circuits, and means preventing operation of said additional card-punching means in the absence of a reference punch made in the card along with the previous time entry punched therein.
 4. The invention as recited in claim 1, including means preventing manual removal of the card from the apparatus after the card has been positioned in the reference position.
 5. The invention as recited in claim 1, wherein the means defining the initial reference position of the card comprises a carriage member carrying said control means; and including means supporting the carriage member in one of a plurality of fixed positions relative to the card-punching means, and means controlled by the time generator and logic circuits and moving the carriage member from one to another of said fixed positions.
 6. The invention as recited in claim 1, including a resilient ring member positioned in an annular groove formed in the peripheral surface of said drive roller means, the outer peripheral surface of said ring member normally extending beyond the groove.
 7. The invention as recited in claim 1, including a clock presenting a visual indication of time, and means maintaining said clock in synchronism with the time generator.
 8. The invention as recited in claim 1, including means preventing a subsequent operation of said ratcheting means until the contact arm of said rotary switch has been rotated from one to the next fixed contact thereof.
 9. The invention as recited in claim 1, including means preventing the operation of said card transport means for a predetermined time period when a time change is about to be made in the time generator.
 10. The invention as recited in claim 1, including means effective upon actuation of said control means to prevent introduction into the logic circuits of a change in current time until the completion of the punching of the time entry in the card.
 11. The invention as recited in claim 1, including means actuating an alarm when the card is not ejected from the apparatus within a predetermined time period after actuation of said control means.
 12. The invention as recited in claim 1, including means actuating an alarm when power for operation of the apparatus has been disrupted for a predetermined time period.
 13. The invention as recited in claim 1, including a control switch positioned to be actuated a first time by the card upon insertion thereof into the apparatus and a second time by the card when it is in the ejected position, and means preventing a second operation of said card transport means while the ejected card retains the said control switch in the actuated position.
 14. The invention as recited in claim 1, wherein the card carries means defining a correct orientation of the card for insertion into the apparatus; and including means preventing operation of said card-transport means when the card is inserted into the apparatus in other than the correct orientation.
 15. The invention as recited in claim 1, including means terminating operation of said card-transport means when said control means is not actuated within a predetermined time period.
 16. Apparatus for punching time in standard data processing cards including means coding the cards in correspondence with predetermined time schedules, said apparatus comprising, a. means forming a card passageway, b. a series of punches positioned to punch individual lines of the card when the card is in the passageway, c. a carriage member, d. means supporting the carriage member in one of a plurality of fixed positions spaced from said punches, e. first drive roller means and cooperating pinch roller means extending into said passageway for engagement with the card, said drive roller means being mechanically coupled to a reversible motor, f. first control means actuated by he card upon partial insertion of the card into said passageway, g. second control means carried by the carriage member and positioned for actuation by the card when it is in said passageway, h. first motor control means energizing said motor for rotation in one direction upon actuation of said first control means, said first roller means now rotating to drive the card into said passageway to actuate said second control means, i. means deenergizing said motor upon actuation of said second control means, j. second drive roller means and cooperating pinch roller means extending into the passageway for engagement with the card, k. a card reader reading information coded in the card, l. storage means storing information from said card reader, m. means applying the stored information to logic circuits preprogrammed in accordance with said predetermined time schedules, n. a time generator introducing current time information into the logic circuits, o. means moving the carriage member from one to another fixed position in accordance with a second time schedule, p. a first rotary switch having a plurality of fixed contacts and having a contact arm mechanically coupled to the said second drive roller means, q. ratcheting means mechanically-coupled to the said second drive roller means and operated upon actuation of said second control means, operation of said ratcheting means rotating the contact arm of said first rotary switch from one to the next fixed contacts thereof, and rotating the said second drive roller means in a step-by-step manner resulting in a corresponding step-by-step linear displacement of the card from the carriage member, r. means including said first rotary switch and controlling the number of operations of said ratcheting means, s. punch-operating means controlled by the said first rotary switch and logic circuits and operating selected of said punches to punch current time as a multiple digit time entry in the card between displacements thereof in the said step-by-step manner, and t. second motor control means energizing said motor for rotation in the reverse direction after the time entry has been punched in he card, said first drive roller means now driving the card in a reverse direction in the passageway.
 17. The invention as recited in claim 16, including an additional punch positioned to provide a reference punch in the card, and means controlled by said card reader and operating the additional punch along with alternate time entries punched in the card.
 18. The invention as recited in claim 16, including an additional punch positioned to provide a reference punch in the card, means controlled by said logic circuits for operating said additional punch along with the multiple digit time entry made in the card when such time entry corresponds to the time schedule preprogrammed in the logic circuits, and means including said card reader to prevent operation of said additional punch in the absence of such first reference punch made in the card along with the previous time entry punched therein.
 19. The invention as recited in claim 18, wherein the means coding the cards comprises prepunches made in predetermined columns and lines of the cards.
 20. The invention as recited in claim 16, wherein said card reader comprises a plurality of photocells and associated lamps; and including means normally energizing the lamps at a predetermined low voltage, and means energizing the lamps at a predetermined higher voltage upon actuation of said second control means,
 21. The invention as recited in claim 16, including a resilient ring member positioned in an annular groove formed in the peripheral surface of said second drive roller means, the outer peripheral surface of said ring member normally extending beyond the groove.
 22. The invention as recited in claim 16, including a shaft carrying the pinch roller means cooperating with said second drive roller means, means mounting the shaft for lateral displacement relative to said second drive roller means, a solenoid having an armature positioned for engagement with said shaft, means energizing the solenoid upon actuation of said second control means, said armature now displacing said shaft so that the pinch roller means presses the card against the second drive roller means, and means deenergizing the solenoid simultaneously upon energization of said motor by the said second motor control means.
 23. The invention as recited in claim 16, including a shaft carrying tHe pinch roller means cooperating with said first drive roller means, means mounting the shaft for lateral displacement relative to the first drive roller means, a solenoid having a spring-biased armature normally engaging said shaft and maintaining a pressure between the cooperating pinch roller means and drive roller means, means energizing the solenoid upon actuation of said second control means thereby relieving the pressure between said pinch roller means and drive roller means, and means deenergizing the said solenoid upon energization of said motor by the said second motor control means.
 24. The invention as recited in claim 16, wherein the said first drive roller means and cooperating pinch roller means comprises a first pair of axially spaced drive rollers and cooperating pinch rollers and a second pair of axially spaced drive rollers and cooperating pinch rollers, said first and second pairs of drive rollers being spaced along the card passageway by a distance less than the card length; wherein the said first control means is a normally open switch proximate to the first pair of drive rollers; wherein the second pair of drive rollers is spaced from said second control means by a distance less than the card length irrespective of the fixed position occupied by the carriage member; and including a second normally open switch proximate to said second pair of drive rollers and connected in parallel with said first switch, said second switch being actuated by the card prior to its actuation of the said second control means.
 25. The invention as recited in claim 16, including means operated upon actuation of said second control means and preventing introduction into the logic circuits of a change in current time information until said motor is energized by the said second motor control means.
 26. The invention as recited in claim 16, including means operated upon actuation of said first control means and delaying the energization of said motor by said first motor control means for a predetermined time period as a time change is made in the time generator or in the position of the carriage member.
 27. The invention as recited in claim 16, including means actuated upon the actuation of said first control means and operating an alarm when the time between energization of the said motor by said first motor control means and said second motor control means exceeds a predetermined time interval.
 28. The invention as recited in claim 16, including means operating an alarm when electrical power to the apparatus has been disrupted for a predetermined time interval, means maintaining the alarm in operation, and manually operable means for terminating operation of said alarm.
 29. The invention as recited in claim 16, including means actuated upon the actuation of said first control means and operating an alarm when the time between actuation of said first control means and the actuation of said second control means exceeds a predetermined time interval.
 30. The invention as recited in claim 16, including a third control means positioned at the entrance of said passageway and actuated by the card after it has been driven in the said reverse direction, and means preventing a second energization of said motor by said first motor control means while the card retains said third control means in the actuated condition.
 31. The invention as recited in claim 16, including means preventing a subsequent operation of said ratcheting means until the contact arm of said first rotary switch has been rotated from one to the next fixed contact thereof.
 32. The invention as recited in claim 16, including a clock presenting a visual display of time, and means maintaining said clock in synchronism with the time generator.
 33. The invention as recited in claim 16, wherein the said ratcheting means is operated a predetermined number of times before the punching of the time entry in the card, the predetermined number of operations of the ratcheting means being determined by the coded time schedule of the particular card inserted into the apparatus and read by the card reader.
 34. The invention as recited in claim 16, wherein the said logic circuits comprise silicon controlled rectifiers; wherein the punch-operating means comprise solenoids in the output circuits of the rectifiers; wherein the time generator comprises a digital clock having a number of dials corresponding to the number of digits of the time entry to be punched in the card and a corresponding number of rotary switches having contact arms individually rotatable with an associated dial, each such rotary switch having a plurality of fixed contacts; and wherein the inputs to the rectifier are controlled by the said first rotary switch and the positions of the rotary switches associated with the dials of the clock.
 35. The invention as recited in claim 34, wherein the contact arms of the rotary switches associated with the dials of the clock simultaneously engage all but one of the associated fixed contacts; wherein such contact arms are connected to one side of a voltage source; wherein the fixed contacts of such rotary switches are individually connected in the input circuits of the rectifiers; wherein the contact arm of the said first rotary switch is connected to the other side of the voltage source; and wherein the fixed contacts of the said first rotary switch are individually connected in the input circuits of the rectifiers.
 36. The invention as recited in claim 34, wherein the contact arms of the rotary switches associated with the dials of the clock engage only one of the associated fixed contacts at a time; wherein such contact arms are connected to one side of a voltage source; wherein the fixed contacts of such rotary switches are individually connected in the input circuits of transistor switches, which transistor switches have output circuits individually connected in the input circuits of said rectifiers; wherein the contact arm of the said first rotary switch is connected to the other side of the voltage source; and wherein the fixed contacts of the said first rotary switch are individually connected to the input circuits of said rectifiers.
 37. The invention as recited in claim 16, wherein the said card reader comprises a plurality of photocells and associated lamps; wherein the said storage means comprises a bistable multivibrator associated with each of the photocells; and including means applying an energizing and resetting voltage to all of the multivibrators upon actuation of the said first control means, means triggering a multivibrator when the light striking the associated photocell has a predetermined intensity, and means automatically deenergizing the multivibrators upon completion of the punching of the time entry in the card.
 38. The invention as recited in claim 16, including a clock presenting a digital display of time, means maintaining the clock in synchronism with the said time generator, an electronic counter operated by the time generator, solid state logic gates operated by the electronic counter, and means controlled by the said logic gates and presenting a visual display corresponding to the day of the week and the AM or PM period of the day.
 39. The invention as recited in claim 16, wherein the said means moving said carriage member from one to another fixed position comprises second logic circuits preprogrammed in accordance with said second predetermined time schedule, means introducing current time information from said time generator into said second logic circuits, means controlled by said second logic circuits and moving said carriage member from one to another fixed position in one direction, an electronic counter operated by said second logic circuits, third logic circuits preprogrammed in accordance with said second predetermined time schedule, and means operated by said third logic circuits and moving the carriage member from one to another position in the other direction. 